Animal Friends Pet Insurance Declined Claim

sazman

Could anyone please advise here if the they insurance should be covering my vet fees ?

I had a my first policy with Animal Friends for my dog on 25 Jul 2020 and my dog had no conditions or records of anything this time. I had take my dog to a vet on 5 May 2021  as he as something which had caused some vomiting rand he had an injection which has made him feel better. We didn't claim anything and the vet had just advised it was something that the dog may have eat which may caused unhappy tummy. So when this policy expired was about to expire I had missed to renewal on 25 July 2021, I couldn't call them as I was away travelling hence I purchased a policy from Animal Friends on 17 Aug 2021. 

So after couple of months on Sept, my do became ill for few days of not eating and vomiting, so i took him to the vet and had couple of injections antibiotics and the vet advised that this could be due to Gastroentritis, apancreatitis. So all the cost of the treatment was submitted for the claim and Animal Friends declined the clam reason being that clinical history has been reviewed and due to the vet visit on 5 july they are saying this is a pre-existing condition and also saying the policy now Excludes cover on all claims with respect to the Digestive System.

Firstly the 5 july 2021 visit doesn't show any records that its related to this sept illness and also I  had insured my dog then as the previous policy expired after on 25 July 2021.

Now i'm only 2 months on this insurance and they are refusing to cover any claim related to Digestive System. I've to keep paying for the rest of the 10 months.

Even it was a separate policy, wouldn't it be possible that they should be able to provide the claim ? And do i need to provide that these 2 illness are not related ?

Any advise would be appreciated. 

tacpot12

I think you need to prove that these 2 illnesses are not related. Your vet is the best person to provide the evidence you need.

You also need to read the policy booklet to see if they can decide if there are ranges of illnesses (such as those affecting the digestive system) that are excluded after a claim. This might be an unfair contract term, and you might want to complain to the company and then to the Finacial Ombudsman.  

sheramber

You have two separate policies. Any condition arising before you took out the second policy  or anything that can be related to it , is an excluded condition on that policy. You did not renew. You took out a new policy. Had you declared the original vet visit then they would have excluded all further digestive conditions. That is normal for pet insurance policies and would have applied if you had taken out a policy with any company. Animal Friends are particularly strict in that respect. If your vet will confirm that the second episode is on no way related to the first episode you can go through the appeal procedure in your policy document. This is the hazard of not renewing a policy after you have consulted a vet , whether any treatment is given or not. 

sazman

thanks for the reply guys, i do agree on the separate policies but i fee that they shouldn't just decline the claim without any proof that shows its relatable. ill try to get the evidence docs from my vet as they've asked that i could do that too on the email but also mentioned "however, we are unable to give any guarantees as to whether the claim will be overturned." 

sheramber

Whatever you submit will be forwarded to the underwriters , who will decide. 

Customer service have no control over that or any knowledge of how the underwriters will view it.